02 - Post-War

02 - POST- WAR

WW2 brought Europe to its knees. After its conclusion many military sites were left to rot

Buildings, like ideas, take on a life and story of their own - with highs and lows. Even the largest and most heroic structures can fall into disrepair and become shadows of their former selves. R.A.F. Hullavington was built for war. But after hostilities ended its vast hangars were emptied, as the aircraft and their crews took flight. Abandoned for years, Hullavington airfield fell silent. But the spirit of engineering soldiered on; living and breathing in the then derelict hangars. Even during the lowest point in this depression, the airfield's mechanical essence refused to die. Something exemplified by the events of a very special year...

IN 1970...

American pilot, Art Scholl, took part in the sixth World Aerobatics Championships at Hullavington airfield. He battled the Russians in a bitterly close contest - which was won by an eyelash. This is his story.

THE FOLLOWING EXTRACTS TELL THE DRAMATIC STORY OF THE 1970 WAC, WRITTEN BY A PILOT WHO WAS THERE

01

"Stunt Flying? Not on your life! It’s no more like the old-fashioned stunt flying than Olympic gymnastics is like the tricks done by Hollywood stunt men. Call it by its real name: Aerobatics. The 60 pilots gathered for the World Aerobatics Championships occasionally do stunts – like picking up a ribbon strung between two poles, just a few feet above the ground. But these pilots were in Hullavington (England) in mid-July, for two weeks of the most intricate, demanding flying known to man. All directly in front of an international panel of judges."

02

"National prestige is certainly involved, but the intensity of the competition goes far beyond it. When you get top pilots from 11 countries together, their natural spirit takes over. It’s a friendly meeting, but the titles of 'Individual World Champion,' and 'World Team Champion' are highly prized, and the hard work that goes into winning them is not taken lightly."

03

"The meet actually starts with a formal practice session to give all the pilots a chance to familiarize themselves with the airfield and to acquaint themselves with landmarks they will soon have to use when maneuvering at strange altitudes. While doing a roll in a vertical dive, there isn’t much time to look around for a familiar landmark on which to line up."

04

"On a pleasant, cool, clear English evening, the first pilot took off. At the end of the first maneuvers, the U.S. was in an excellent position. National Champ [Bob] Herendeen was in second place (out of 50) trailing the Russian, Igor Egorov, by 3,747 to 3,711."

05

"The team that leads in this monstrous part of the competition must be composed of the best pilots. The regimentation practiced by the Soviet bloc nations doesn’t work here. The American Team superiority was overwhelming. Egorov was still individual leader, but Herendeen was close behind and the American team led by more than 500 points."

06

"By halfway, the team title was headed back across the Atlantic with the US. But tremendous attention then turned to Herendeen and Egorov's battle for individual honors."

The hidden beauty ofAerobatic sequence notes

The World Aerobatic Championships were judged during four programmes of aerobatic flying. The official rules and regulations were published by the competition’s governing body, the Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI), and distributed to the competitors and press. As the competition pamphlet explained, “the first three programmes are concerned with selecting the final number to go forward to fly the fourth programme which decides the ultimate winner.” The first programme consisted of a ‘Compulsory Known Sequence’ which was “a series of individual aerobatic manoeuvres strung together and flown as a whole.” It was distributed months before the event so as to give pilots “a chance to practise it”. The second programme was a ‘Compulsory Unknown Sequence” which was “put together by the organisers 24 hours before it [was] flown and [came] as a complete surprise to the competing pilots”. The third, was a ‘Free Programme’ which was selected by the pilot. Finalists then took part in a further free programme to determine an overall winner.

The system judges use to mark the quality of the competitor’s aerobatic manoeuvres was invented by Colonel José Luis Aresti Aguirre (1917-2003). The FIA describe the Spanish pilot Aresti as “a true legend in the world of aerobatics”. He is credited with inventing the aerocrytographic System which is still used to judge aerobatic competitions today. The Aresti Catalog organises manoeuvres and combinations into a dictionary, giving each corresponding move “coefficients of difficulty (K factors)”. Each manoeuvre is scored from 0-10 with differences of 0.5 for steps between grades. This mark is then multiplied by the K factor to take into account the manoeuvre’s difficulty.

For example:

A pilot executes a manoeuvre that one judge decides is worth 7 marks out of 10. The K factor for this particular manoeuvre is 8. Therefore, the total number of points given for the manoeuvre is 56.

07

"Egorov led 6,670 to 6,556. But the final two free groups were Herendeen’s speciality and his chances of moving into the lead looked excellent. Until suddenly his propeller stopped! ”

08

"Just as he was going into a tail spin, the powerful engine in his red-and-white Pitts Special just quit! He recovered smoothly and made an expert emergency landing, but the team and its growing body of followers held their collective breath. Through two careful inspections of the engine and two lengthy meetings of the International Jury, they held their breath. Finally, and not without the unfortunate sight of the Russian juror stamping out in a fit of temper, Herendeen was absolved of responsibility and permitted to fly his Third Group maneuvers again."

09

"I’ve never seen such tension and suspense built up at any world competition. Everyone has been watching the battle between Bob and Egorov. But as soon as everyone’s ready to go the Russians gladly put their planes away again."

10

"This went on for three days. Finally there was one chance left to fly. But the wind picked up to about 12 meters per second. By noon the Championship was called. Egorov became champion and Herendeen was runner up. It was over and it was a relief - there had been enough pressure to last a couple of World Championships."

11

"There was a little time to relax. And to fly other people’s planes. British Champ Neil Williams took Herendeen’s Pitts Special up for a 10-minute flight that lasted a half hour. Herendeen flew the big, bulky-looking Russian Yak- 18 which had beaten him, and was surprised by its lightness on the controls, but felt it would take a lot of getting used to. Several pilots flew the radical little Swiss-German “Acrostar” and were as impressed with its flying as they had been by Arnold Wagner’s fourth-place finish in the barely-tested machine. A few minutes later, the [American Team’s] four little Pitts Specials, the Akromaster and the Super Chipmunk taxied out, took off and disappeared quickly into the greyness, on the first leg of their long trip back home. They took back everything they had brought with them, plus the Nesterov Cup for the Team Championship, a gold medal for Mary Gaffaney’s First Group victory, and a lifetime’s worth of memories."